The Vision

Overview
The Vision enables organizations to define their ideal state of being. Done correctly, this Vision will inspire and motivate each and every employee to perform at their very best. As we'll see in coming modules the Vision will also help us define the goals and objectives of the organization as it brings clarity to what the future will look like. The Vision is always stated in the present tense as people begin to imagine what a positive future for their organization looks like. This is very similar to what business coach Steven Covey teaches when he encourages people to construct a mental image of what success looks like. He challenges his students to begin with the end in mind. Now, in earlier modules we spent a lot of time talking about the current situation of the organization. We learned about identifying the organization's strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. We also talked about reviewing the performance of metrics and examining so called STEEP factors. These different forms of analysis are very important as we prepare to define the Strategic Vision of the organization.

Characteristics
Before we learn how to create the vision let's talk a bit about its characteristics. First, the Vision is best constructed by a group of senior leaders since the chances for long term success are much higher when the vision is shared by many. Next, the Vision should be grounded in reality as the team focuses on how to solve existing problems by the creation of an improved ideal state. This is why having a good grasp of the organization's strengths and opportunities are so important as we work to manage by facts. And finally, as we mentioned earlier the vision should inspire all associates, much like Dr. Martin Luther King's vision for a better tomorrow inspired people the world over.

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Steps to Creating the Vision

The first step of the process is for the team to form what we call the reflection question. For example, a reflection question could be, "It's December 2013 and net profits are at an all time high; how did we accomplish this?" Remember, the vision is always stated in the present tense which is why we also state the reflection question in the present tense. We can also create reflection questions that are more project or task-oriented. Here's an example, "We've designed and deployed an effective expense reporting system. What are its key characteristics?" Again, this question is written in the present tense as if it's already happened. Now, once the reflection question is created the second step of the process is to leverage a powerful brainstorming tool called the Affinity Diagram. To begin this process each team member writes down as many answers to the reflection question as they can on post it notes. Each post it note should have one answer written in block letters. Once complete each post it note should be randomly placed on a wall or piece of butchers paper. Each team member should be encouraged to read all their colleagues' answers as this will help generate additional ideas. After around 10 to 20 minutes there will most likely be dozens of post it notes on the wall. We've personally seen more than a hundred post it notes created by a small group in less than 20 minutes. Once all team members are satisfied with their answers it's time to group all the answers into common themes. There are different ways to go about this process but the technique we prefer is for the entire group to work together in silence as they start to move the ideas into groups. Now, if a team member disagrees with the placement of a post it note they can simply move it and if there is definite disagreement as to where something belongs that idea can be duplicated and placed in two groups. Once the team is comfortable all the post it notes are in their correct group the next step is to create header cards for each group. This is an important step as the header card should capture the true meaning of the group. 4. The Vision Page 2

To start, teams often come up with a single word to describe the group of post it notes such as "Continuous Improvement." They then work to better define this into a complete statement such as, "All associates relentlessly attack waste on a daily basis." At this point, these header cards now summarize the vision of the organization and should be shared with all associates in order to gain their buy in. An effective approach is to give associates different colored post it notes and ask them to add their own thoughts and ideas. The last step of the process is for one of the group members, who may be skilled as a wordsmith, to summarize the header cards into a narrative format or bullet point format which can then be easily shared with external stakeholders in various formats such as brochures and annual reports.

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